Alien Breed Evolution brings back classic Amiga game

It may not push the genre forward in any strong directions, but Alien Breed …

Alien Breed is a game that some remember with great enthusiasm, while others respond with blank stares when the title is brought up. A hit on the Amiga, the top-down title was a little bit Gauntlet, a little bit Doom, and a little bit Aliens. The update is out now on the Xbox Live Arcade for 800 points ($10), and it's coming to both the PC and the PlayStation Network in 2010.

Without having played the original—I received a gentle mocking for that shortcoming by Team 17 itself at an early GDC where I was able to play an early version of the game—this is one I'm going to have to judge on its own merits.

The top-down graphics, powered by the Unreal Engine 3, are solid and detailed. You can spin your view around using the left and right bumpers when playing by yourself, and that's a big help when trying to find passage ways and doors that might have been obscured in the standard view. That power is taken away when playing in co-op, however, as both players need to stay on the same screen.

The story is told via comic book panels between each of the five chapters, although all you need to know is one analog stick moves your character, and the other aims your weapon. You shoot all the aliens until they stop moving. You search lockers and bodies, and you use computer terminals to move the game forward. It really is that simple, and you're going to have a good time unless you expect a step forward in the run-and-gun, dual-analog shooter genre. This is a genre game for those who think grabbing a flamethrower is a very exciting thing.

By the way, grabbing the flamethrower is a very exciting thing.

My only complaint is the constant search mechanic that slows down gameplay. Instead of instantly knowing what's on a dead body, you have to hold down the interact button for a few seconds before being told if there's anything of worth to pick up. The same with lockers. It slows down the flow of the game unnecessarily, and while it adds tension to the experience, it seems to be pulling the game in a direction that's rarely explored. Each chapter is filled with baddies, but you'll also be looking around the levels for ways to fix every mechanical thing you find, since everything is broken, keeping you from moving forward.

As a co-op game, this is a good time with solid graphics, familiar mechanics, and the name of a cult favorite for added buzz. Jack up the difficulty to Elite if you're in the mood for a more measured and frightening gameplay experience. There may not be many surprises here, but killing everything that moves during an online co-op game remains a good way to kill an afternoon.

I have some fond memories of this. I remember the CD32 version of Tower Assault with the really shoddy acting in the intro. There was also an Alien Breed 3D which I never played, but I do remember it had some pretty cutting edge graphics for its day, on the Amiga at least.

Is this in the same series as the Alien Syndrome games that were released for PSP and Wii? They were repetitive and boring but my friends and I couldn't stop playing 4 player co-op on the Wii for about 8 hours straight one day.

It was a game that was out on GameTap. I loved the top-down third-person shooter style with all of the lighting effects, but unfortunately it was frying the HP laptop that I had at the time. I have a sweeter PC rig now, but I'm not going back to GameTap just for one game.

Also, on the subject of online game services, I've heard that OnLive has begun beta testing. Any word on a performance review, Ars?